A Cinderella Story
by samanddianefan10
Summary: After Ryan leaves Kelly and the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, Kelly has to decide if she can truly live without him. Just as she's finally moved on, Ryan comes back, will she forgive him? Or has she found out there's more to life than Ryan Howard?


"We're through," Ryan said as he hung up the phone.

"What?" Kelly said as she couldn't believe her ears.

"You heard me. It's over." He started packing his stuff up.

He had to be kidding. This had to be a joke. She had broken up with him a thousand times before. She never meant it. He couldn't either.

"Ryan why are you doing this? I've been so good lately! I haven't done anything, I've been so good to you. I swear I've been taking my pills. Are you seeing another girl?" she asked him suspiciously.

"When have I had time to see another girl? You're always around! You're like my mother. I can't do anything because you're like my shadow. I can't take it anymore!" He ran his hands through his hair, still not bothering to look at her.

"I'll do anything, Ryan please don't leave me. I love you."

"Kelly you don't know what love is," he said, finally turning around to look at her. You're in love with the idea of being in love. You want love and marriage and babies. I don't want that. Not with you. Has it ever occurred to you that I have my own dreams and goals? I've chased them and guess what? Mine have come true. You know that job Jim and Karen applied for? I got it. That's right. I'm Michael's boss now. That means I'm your boss. That means no more phone calls, no texts, no emails. Do I need to send you a memo?"

Kelly shook her head, not fully understanding what Ryan meant. Ryan-gone. New York. With him gone there was no way she would be able to win him back. With her breaking up with him there was always the chance she could make things right with a few tears and an "I'm sorry please forgive me." Now there were not enough tears in the world to make this right.

They didn't say another word to each other; they didn't' need to. Ryan had said enough for the both of them. For the next few weeks everyone had treaded carefully around Kelly. No one spoke _his _name to her, although she kept his picture on her desk. Michael came by occasionally to borrow it for a few minutes. He understood.

At home she would bury herself in her tabloids and a quart of Haagen-Daas. Her clothes were getting a little tight but she didn't particularly care. She had no one to look good for anymore. Who was she going to look good for-Kevin? It seemed so hard to believe that Ryan was gone. All Kelly knew was that Ryan had broken her heart for the final time, and she truly believed that she would never ever love anyone again as long as she lived. She left the house only to go to work and to the bank and to the grocery store. It hurt to go out. Too many happy people out there. Gone were her dreams of marriage and babies; she would die alone in her apartment filled with fifteen cats and no one would notice she was gone.

One day she walked into work to see what everyone was looking at at Oscar's desk. It was a YouTube video of a strung out looking Ryan Howard getting handcuffed away by the police, something about fudging the numbers for corporate. Kelly was shocked. Gone was the handsome, pretty young man she had fallen in love with. She had let herself go and hated herself for months for a person who hated himself and did illegal things and had no respect for her or himself or for the law or anyone else around him. She looked at her thighs. She gave up those for him?

So the first thing she did was take Ryan's picture out of her drawer and pitch it in the trash. Michael saw her, and she swore he was going to dig it out so she threw her yogurt container on top of it. He made a disappointed face and then walked away. There were not going to be any reminders of Ryan around here as long as she had any say in it. When she got home Kelly threw out her cartons of ice cream and bags of chips and cookies and called about a membership to the YMCA. She started on Monday before work. After work she went and bought healthy food, including water, giving up the soda she'd become hooked on. It was hard but after seeing Ryan she did not want to be him in any way shape or form.

A few months later she was pleased when she had dropped fifteen pounds, five more than she had gained. She wore her booty pants to work, showing off what she liked best about herself. What Ryan liked best about her. For some reason today she was thinking about him. Soon enough she saw the reason he was on her mind. He was back, yet again as a temp, looking humbled and much healthier than the last time she had seen him.

"Kel-wow-you look great. You look beautiful. Have you done something different with yourself?" Ryan asked as he approached her.

She looked up and stared. "Yeah it's called the powder free diet. You should try it sometime."

He took a deep breath. "Kelly I know you hate me and I deserve it but I'm in a recovery program and they teach you to try to make amends to the ones you've hurt and I know that you're the one that I've hurt the most…I want to say I'm sorry for everything I put you through. I wasn't a well man. I hurt you and I took advantage of you and I used you and I was a very selfish man. I'm so sorry Kelly. Is there anything I can do to make this right?"

"Yes, Ryan, there is. There is one thing I want from you…"

Ryan closed his eyes. She was going to ask him back. And in order to make things right he would have to. And he would be the best boyfriend ever.

As loudly as she could, Kelly stood up on her desk and said, "Ryan Howard, you can do me the favor of going to hell. I don't love you anymore. I don't like you any more. I can do so much better than you. And besides, you're kind of creepy."

The entire office started clapping for Kelly, and she got off her desk then started jumping up and down with joy.

Ryan rolled his eyes; only this time, it wasn't at Kelly. It was at himself. He was the fool that had let a good woman get away. He'd lost his job, his mind, his sobriety, but what he missed most of all was his girl. And he had no one to blame but himself. He'd blown it, and he knew it, and now he knew he had just let the future mother of his children slip out of his hands. She was Cinderella at the ball, and he was just a temp. Kind of served him right.

The end


End file.
